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July 16, 2009 ·It looked more like a small corporate retreat than a gathering of soldiers. More than 60 wounded warriors and Army officers dressed in civilian clothes met in conference rooms at a downtown hotel to openly discuss what the Army is doing right and wrong when caring for its wounded. Colonel Jim Rice is the director of the Army’s Wounded Warrior Program.
“We do wear civilian clothing during the week. It’s to really break down some of the barriers that might ensue between either a family member or a soldier who are here. We want to make sure that those walls are broken down, that it’s not a barrier to their communication in presenting their issue to us,” said Rice.
That atmosphere made it possible for soldiers like Dane Kaimalua to tell his story.
“I knew I was in trouble when I told my wife I was going to kill her,” said Kaimalua.
After being deployed to Iraq with the California National Guard, Kaimalua returned in 2006 with severe symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder. He’s been through several treatment programs, with the VA and private organizations, to try to manage his anger and extreme anxiety. He’s on the road to recovery, but his marriage has fallen apart.
“Me and the wife just filed for divorce. We both agreed that it’s better for the kids to not have to grow up seeing me like this,” said Kaimalua.
Kaimalua came to this Wounded Warrior Symposium to ask the Army to improve its treatment programs for PTSD, not just for soldiers, but especially for their families.
“Hopefully something will get done for the families, because, I think if my family and me would’ve had help from the beginning, I might still have one,” said Kaimalua.
Kaimalua and other participants shared their concerns in private focus groups all week and then voted on the top five issues they want the Army to address. Brigadier General Gary Cheek leads the Warrior Transition Command. He says the Army has to constantly evaluate its care and support of wounded warriors.
“There are things that we think we have fixed, that they’re really telling us, they’re not so fixed, that we’ve got to work harder at that execution piece. And then there are other things that they’re telling us that we just don’t know about, and we’re like, ‘Wow, we really need to work on that,’ said Cheek.
Cheek says it’s important for wounded warriors to know that their care is a one of the Army’s top priorities.
“We want them to be excited about their future. We want them to be able to focus on their abilities and what they can do and not their disabilities and what they cannot do,” said Cheek.
Issues raised in the last four symposiums have led to expanding facilities that treat traumatic brain injury and helped establish Soldier Family Assistance Centers. Cheek says the recommendations generated by this gathering will also play a role in shaping Army healthcare policy. |
